Shoe-upper-shaping machine



' May 7,1929. I

E. A. HOLMGREN -SHOE UPPER SHAPING MACHINE Original Filed Jan. 2, 1926 2Sheets-Sheet l Fig.1. w 52 May 7, 1929. E. A. HOLMGREN 1,

' SHOE UPPER SHAPING MACHINE Original Filed Jan. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Patented May 7, 1929.

U STATES 1 1 1,711,946 PATENT OFFICE,

Euro 11. HOLMGREN, or LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, AssIeNoR T uivrrnn SHOE MA-cnnvnn'r eonronnrron, or PATERSON', NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION or NEWJERSEY.

SHOE-UPPER-SHAIIN G MACHINE.

Application filed January 2, 1926, Serial No. 78,846. Renewed June 14,1928.

This invention relates to machines for use in the manufacture of bootsand shoes for shaping the upper materials, and is herein illustrated inits application to a type of machine the general organization of whichis shown and described in Letters Patent No. 1,692,284, granted onNovember 20, 1928, upon an application of \Villiam C. Baxter, havingmeans for molding the toe of the upper, oil the last, substantially tothe shape desired. tor the finished shoe. It is to be understood,however, that in some of its novel and useful aspects the invention isnot limited to machines of that particular type, nor to machines forshaping or molding the upper over a form of the character illustrated asdistinguished from a. different kind of form such, for example, as alast.

In accordance with the invention set forth in a co-pcnding applicationof \Villiam C. Baxter, Serial No. 28,389,.filed on May 6, 1925, therewere provided, in a machine of the above-mentioned type, grippers whichipped the margin of the upper at the opposite sides of the toesubstantially at the ends of the tip seam and acted, in the shaping ormolding of the upper over the form, to control the margin of the upper,so as to insure that in the molded toe the opposite ends of the tip linewould be at the proper distance from the end of the toe. In theconstruction shown in thatapplication the grip} ers were mounted to moveinwardly toward the form, in response to the pull of the upper thereonin the .molding operation, in directions substantially perpendicular tothe longitudinal median line of the form.

The present invention, in one aspect, provides a construction in whichmargin controlling or gripping means is movable, at least at one side ofthe form, in such manner as to effect a definite rearward displacementof the nnn'gin of the upper. In the molding of some styles of toes thisis found to be an advantage in that itlessens the tendency for wrinklesto form about the end of the toe the margin of the upperis wipedinwardly to produce a flange adapted for attachment to an insole. Undersome conditions. it may he preterabie thus to effect a rearwarddisplacement of the margin of the upper at one side only of the form,while under other conditions it will be advantaas herein illustrated, toeffect difi'erent degrees of rearward displacement of the margin at theopposite sides respectively. ,To meet such varying conditions of use,and under all conditions to permit such variation in the extent ofrearwarddisplacement of the margin of the upper as may be founddesirable, the invention further provides for adjustment ofmargin-controlling means to vary the angular relation of its path ofmovement to the longitudinal median line of the. form. The constructionherein shown comprises grippers arranged to grip and control the marginof the upper at the opposite sides of the form respectively and eachadjustable independently of the other to determine the direction or pathof its movement.

The invention willnow be more particle larly described by reference tothe accompanying drawings and then pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, 1

Fig. lis a view in side elevation of a portion of a machine of the typeshown in the above-mentioned Letters Patent and application with the pres entinvention embodied therein;

Fig. 2 is a plan View of a portion of the machine; 1 Fig. 3 is a view,partly in plan and partly in section, illustrating the relation ottheinner molding form to other portions of the machine;

Figs l and 5 are viewsof portions of the machine, partly infrontelevation andpartly in section, illustrating different stages inthe molding operation; and I Fig. 6 shows the toeportion of an upperbetoreit isopcrated upon by the machine. As shown and described indetail in the Letters Patentand application above men tioned, themachine comprises an inner toe form 10 (Fig. 3) which is mounted foroperative downward movement, a toe band 12 which wipes the upperupwardly over the end and the sides of the form in response to thedownward movement of the latter, wipers lwhich areadvanced and closed towipe thegmargin of the upper into an angular groove 16 on the form 10and to mold it to conform substantially. to the feather and the ribzot'an insole, and clamp members 18 which clamp the margin of the upperyieldingly upon the top faceot the wipers 14: to assist in drawing theupper tightly about the form in the downward movement of the form withinthe band 12. The upper is presented with its margin outspread upon thetop face of the wipers, in exact prede termined relation to the moldinginstrumentalities, by the use of a tool (not shown) provided with pinswhich enter jig holes 20 in the margin of the upper and co-operate withslots 22 in the wipers to determine the position of the upper, as morefully shown and described in the Letters Patent and application. Afterthe upper has been thus presented, it is clamped on the wipers with itsmargin in a plane parallel to the wipers by downward movement of themembers 18, and it is also clamped or gripped in substantially the sameplane at the opposite ends of the tip seam, adjacent to the rear ends ofthe clamp members 18, by opposite pairs of gripper jaws 2% and 26 whichare mounted to swing inwardly toward the form in fixed paths in responseto the pull of the upper thereon in the downward upper-shaping movementof the form 10, so as to prevent uncontrolled shi ting movement of themargin of the upper lengthwise of the form, in accordance with thegeneral objects set forth in application Serial No. 28,389. In additionto the means for controlling the margin of the upper, there is provideda toe rest 28 against which the intermediate portion of the toe of theupper is clamped by the form 10, the toe rest being mounted for yieldingdownward movement as the form is depressed. The form 10, as hereinillustrated, is provided with a lip 29 in the groove 16 in position toco-operate with the wipers to mold in that portion of the margin of theupper which is to lie against the rib of the insole a groove adapted tobe utilized with a corresponding ridge on the rib of the insole toassist in determining the proper location of the molded toe rela tivelyto the insole.

In the -construction herein shown the gripper jaw 24: of each of theopposite pairs of jaws is fast one bar 30 which is secured at its upperend to an arm 32 pivoted at 3 on a bracket 36 mounted as hereinafterdescribed. Arranged to engage the lower face of one end of the arm 32 isa spring 38 which is mounted in a holder d0 on the side of the bracket36, this spring acting to swing the gripper outwardly away from themolding instrumentalities as far as permitted by a stop 42. This stopcomprises a rectangular block eccentrically mounted on a stud 4st whichmay be turned by means of a knurled head 46 to determine differentinitial positions of the gripper for different sizes of uppers. It willbe understood. that in the molding operation each gripper may swinginwardly toward the form 10 about its pivot 34 against the resistance ofthe spring 38 in response to the pull of the upper upon the closedgripper jaws.

Each of the gri 'iper jaws 26 is fast on a slide 48 mounted for movementon the bar 30 toward and from the co-operating jaw 2a. This slideuniversally connected to one end of a link 50 which at its other enduniversally connected to the front end of a lever mounted on a bracketEach of the levers 52 is connected at its rear end by a link 56 to anarm 58 on a rock shaft 60, and one of the arms 58 is-connected by a link62 to operating mechanism of the character disclosed in a plicationSerial No. 28,389. By this means the gripper jaws 26 are moved intoposition to grip the margin of an upper presented as hereinbeforedescribed, and are thereafter moved at a predetermined time in themolding operation to release the upper.

The clamp members 18 are carried by swinging arms 6% substantially asillustrated in the co-pendin application. In the construction hereinsnown these arms are oper' ated by levers 66 through links 68, thelevers 66 being connected respectively through links 70'and springs 72to the different levers 52. It will be seen that when the levers areoperated to close the gripper jaws 26 on an uppe they also act throughthe springs '4' 2 to move the clamp members 18 yieldingly into positionto clamp the upper on the wipers.

F or purposes of this invention each bracket 36, with its gripper, ismounted for adjusting movement about an axis extending in substantiallyperpendicular relation to the plane of the wipers 14. To this end,

the bracket carries clampin bolts 7% the heads of which are positionedin an areshaped T-slot '56 on the head of the machine. The center ofcurvature of each slot 76 is preferably located at or near the wipingedge of the nearest wiper 1 lwhcn the wipers are'in open position, forexample at the point a (Fig. Either of the grippers may thus be adjustedindependently of the other to vary the angular relation of its path ofmovement to the longitudinal inedian line of the form and to set it, ifdesired, so that as it is moved inwardly toward the form it will have asubsta ial component of rearward movement huglhwise of the form, i. e.,movement rearwardly from the toe end of the form, and will thus effect adefinite rearward displacement of. that portion of the margin of theupper which it engages. tocs it may be preferable for the gripper whichoperates at the inner or big toe side of the upper to have a greatercomponent of rearward movement than the gripper at the other side. andthe drawings illu trate an adjustment such as to accomplish this resl.t. By reference to Fig. 3 it will be seen that in in the melding of somestyles of the style of toe form 10 illustrated the sharpest ciuwature atthe end of the form is atthe inner or big toe side, and it is in thislocation that wrinkles are the most likely to be produced in wiping themargin oi the upper inwardly into the groove 16 in the form. If asubstantial rearward displacement of the margin of the upper at thisside of the form is effected in the inward move ment of the gripper atthat side, there is less opportunity for prominent wrinkles to' beproduced at the end of the form. At the other side of the "form thegripper may or may not have a component of r arward movement, thedrawings illustrating an adjustment such that this gripper has acomponent of rearward movement considerably less in extent than thegripper at the inner side.

Such rearward displacement of the mar gin of the upper at the ends ofthe tip seam as that above referred to as effected in consequence of theillustrated adjustment of the grippers is not inconsistent with theproper positioning of the tip seam, provided the tip and the vamp are soout as to allow for the small amount of rearward displacement which iseffected in the molding operation In other words, all that is necessaryis to allow for this factor in calculating; the degree of the customarycurvature of the tip seam of the flat upper, as illustrated in Fig. 6.

The progressive action of the machine upon the upper in the moldingoperation is illustrated in Figs. 4% and 5. After the upper has beenpresented to the machine in the manner hereinbefore described, the1nargin of the toe end of the upper is clamped upon the wipers by themembers 18 and the margin at the opposite ends of the tip seam isgripped by theopposite pairs of gripper jaws 24,26. As the form lOis'moved down wardly, it bendsthe intermediate portion of the upper out ofthe plane in which it is first presented, while clamping .itupon the toerest 28 and depressing the latter, thus exerting an inward pull upon.the margin of the upper engaged by the members 18 and by the grippers.In response to this pull the nu' igine is permitted to slip between themembers 18 and the wipers as the form is depressed within the toe band.12, but the grippers hold the margin with an unslipping grip and arethemselves swung inwardly toward the form against the resistance o'ltheir springs 38 in response to the pull of the upper upon them. In thisin; ward movement the grippers, while preventing uncontrolled shiftingof themargin of the upper lengthwise of the form, effect a definiterearward displacement of the gripped margin to an extent depending uponhow they are initially adjusted. This contracts the margin of theupperabout the end or" the form and thus assists 1n avoldlng thepresence of prominent wrinkles when the margin is wiped inwardly by thewipers 14- and is molded into a flange adapted for attachment to the ribof an insole. The grippers maintain their grip on the upper until afterthe wipers have begun their inward movement and have arrived, forexample, at the point illustrated in Fig. 5 where they are about topress the margin of the up per into the angular groove 16 in the form.Substantially at this point in the cycle of the machine themargin oftheupper is released by the grippers and the clamp members.

The extent of the rearward. displacement, ii any, which it is thus foundfeasible or desirable to impart to the margin of the'upper at either orboth ends of the tip seam will depend upon various conditions, and moreespecially upon the style of the shoe and the corresponding shape of thetoe form. The construction shown issuch that each gripper may be readilyadjusted indehend ently to meet varying conditions, and once adjustedfor any particular style and size of too, it will produce uniformresults in operating upon all uppers of that style and size. I

'Having described the invention what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States is: i

1. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means formolding the toe portion of an upper over a form, of grippers arran ed togrip the margin of the upper respectively at the opposite sides of theform substantially at the ends of the tip seam, said grippers beingmovable inwardly toward the form while maintaining their grip on theupper as the upper is shaped over the form, and means -for direct ingthe inward movement of one at least of said grippers in apath inclinedtoward the rear end of the form.

2. In a machine of the class described, the combination with meansto'rmolding the toe portion of an upper, oil the last, over a form, ofgrippers arranged to grip themargin of the upper respectively at theopposite sides of the form substantially at the ends of the tip seam,said grippers being movable inwardly toward the form while maintainingtheir grip on the upper as the upper is shaped over the form, andmeans for directing the inward movements of said grippers in pathsinclined toward the rear end of the form in different degrees at theopposite sides of the form respectively. p

3. In a machine oit the class described, the combination with means formolding the toe portion of an upper over a form, comprising devices for,wiping the upper over the end and the sides of theform and forthereaftershaping its margin to produce.

a flange adapted for attachment, to an insale, of grippers arranged togrip the margin oi the upper respectively at the opposite sides of theform, said grippers being movable inwardly toward the form in responseto the pull of the upper thereon in the upper-molding operation whilemaintaining their grip on the upper to control the position of itsmargin, and means for directing the inward movement of one at least ofsaid grippers in a path inclined toward the rear end of the form toeffect a de'tinite rearward displacement of the gripped margin of theupper.

4. In a machine oi. the class described, the combination with means forshaping the toe portion of an upper over a form, ot' grippers arrangedto grip the margin oi? the upper respectively at the opposite sides ofthe form, said grippers being movable inwardly toward the form whilemaintaining their grip on the upper in the uppershaping operation, andmeans for directing the in ard movements of said grippers in pathsinclined toward the rear end ot the form in such degree to cause thegripper at the inner side oi": the toe to have a greater component ofrearward movement than the gripper at the other side of the toe.

5. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means forclamping the margin of the toe portion of an upper, oil the last,outspread substantially in a plane, and a form movable relatively tosaid clamping means to mold the upper, of grippers arranged to grip themargin of the upper at the rear oLt said clamping means substantially atthe ends of the tip seam, said grippers being movable inwardly towardthe form in response to the pull of the upper thereon in theupper-molding movement of the term, and meanstor directingthe movementof one at least of said grippers in a path inclined toward the rear endof the form.

(3. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means formolding the'toe portion ot an upper, oil the last, over a form,including means for wiping its margin inwardly over the form to producea flange adaptedtor attachment to an insole, 0t grippers arranged togrip the margin of the upper substantially at the ends of the tip seamto control the ends of the tip scam in the molding operation, saidgrippers being movable inwardly toward the form while maintaining; theirgrip on the upper, and

means for directing the movement'ot' one at least oi? said grippers m apath inclined toward the rear end of the term.

7. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means formolding the toe portion of an upper, off the last, over a form to giveit substantially the shape desired for the finished shoe, of means forgripping the margin of the upper to control it during the moldingoperation and for imparting to the gripped margin, at least at one sideof the form, a movement rearwardly from the toe end of the form toassist in avoiding the presence of objectionable wrinkles about the endof the form.

8. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means tormolding the toe portion oi an upper, ed the last, over a form, ofgrippers arranged to grip the margin of the upper respectively at theopposite sides of the form, said grippers being movable inwardly towardthe form while maintaining their grip on the upper in the upper-moldingoperation, and means for so controlling said grippers as to cause thegripper at one side of the form to have a component of movementrearwardly from the toe end of the form and to cause the gripper at theother side to operate without any component of rearward movement.

9. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means formolding the toe portion of an upper over a form, of grippers arranged togrip the margin of the upper at the opposite sides of the formsubstantially at the ends of the tip seam, said grippers being movableinwardly toward the form in the upper-molding operation whilemaintaining their grip on the upper to insure that the ends of the tipseam will be properly positioned after the upper has been molded, andone at least of said grippers being adjustable to vary the angularrelation of its path of movement to the longitudinal median line of theform.

10. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means formolding the toe portion of an upper, off the last, over a form, ofgrippers arranged to grip the margin of the upper at the opposite sidesof the form, said grippers being movable inwardly toward the form in theupper-molding operation, and each 01". said grippers being adjustable tomove inwardly either with or without a component of movement rearwardlyfrom the toe end of the form.

11. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means formolding the toe portion of an upper, oli the last, over a form, ofgrippers arranged to grip the margin of the upper at the opposite sidesof the form substantially at the ends of the tip seam, said grippersbeing mounted for swinging movements inwardly toward the form, inresponse to the pull ot the upper thereon in the upper-moldingoperation, about axes extending generally lengthwise of the form, andeach of said grippers being adjustable to vary the angular relation ofits axis to the longitudinal median line of the -form.

12. In a machine of the class described, the combination with means forclamping the margin of the toe portion of an upper outspreadsubstantially in a plane, and a form movable relatively to said clampingmeans to shape the upper, of grippers arranged to grip the margin 01"the upper substantially in said plane at the rear of said clampingmeans, said grippers being movable inwardly toward the form in responseto the pull of the upper thereon in the up- ERIC A. HOLMGREN.

